1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of providing content over a network and other distribution channels, and specifically in one embodiment to the configuration, storage, and delivery of such content over a cable television network.
2. Description of Related Technology
Cable system and other content network operators have historically been at somewhat of a competitive disadvantage to retail and rental outlets for the delivery of certain content (such as new release movie titles) due to the latency inherent in the distribution of such content over cable as compared to these other distribution channels. New release DVDs will typically be available in the rental or retail stores such as Blockbuster® or NetFlix® well in advance of the availability of the same title on a VOD or similar service. This difference in distribution timing and availability is caused in part by the lack of any effective means for distributing the desired content to cable users in a hard (e.g., disc or other tangible media) form. Rather, under the prior art, such users must make use of third party rental or retail outlets if they desire to obtain a physical copy of the content (such as for unlimited personal use).
When content is newly created value related to its release is carefully controlled through various distribution channels in an effort to maximize revenue return for the content owner. For example, a new major motion picture is released through various distribution channels according to availability windows. A typical sequence of such availability windows might be: (1) three months in commercial theater release; (2) subsequent one month release for commercial airline viewing; (3) subsequent two month release for DVD/VCR retail and rental; (4) subsequent 2 month release in cable Video-On-Demand (VOD) or cable and satellite Pay-Per-View (PPV); (5) subsequent two month release for premium cable or satellite channel distribution (e.g., HBO, Showtime, etc.); and (6) subsequent release for non-premium channel broadcast (e.g., NBC, TBS, etc.). Distribution networks such as cable operators have sought to increase the value of distribution of such content through their networks by obtaining rights to earlier windows of availability, thereby increasing potential interest by cable subscribers and buy rates of content through VOD or PPV purchases. In particular, cable and satellite operators have sought availability of major motion picture releases through VOD and PPV on the same “day and date” terms as rental or purchase through retail outlets. However, conventional business models dictate that only after the rental and retail markets have at least partly saturated can the “new” release be distributed via cable or satellite.
One possible approach for cable or satellite system operators to overcome this competitive disadvantage is to offer to sell and ship a DVD or similar medium with the purchase of a viewing opportunity (e.g., on-demand movie purchase). Hence, if a subscriber wanted to purchase the content, they could be provided with this opportunity concurrent with viewing, or via a similar mechanism. Such an approach creates a certain billing and fulfillment requirements where the service provider may be required to use one or more third party providers (e.g., an on-line entity such as Amazon.com) to process the transaction, fill the order, and/or deliver the requested medium. Furthermore, if the DVD is to be shipped ground or some other reasonably inexpensive shipping option (which would be mandated in order to keep the costs competitive with other modalities), a protracted and potentially unpredictable delivery period may occur, thereby significantly reducing customer satisfaction. Such protracted or unpredictable period may also increase the user's propensity to return the merchandise, since they now have more time to consider the merits of the purchase. Stated simply, the more “impulsive” the opportunity for commerce (especially at a comparatively low price point), the smaller the likelihood of a return or cancellation of that purchase. Under the foregoing approach, the cable service provider would also have to pay the third party for providing the required billing and/or shipping services.
Recent advances in cable network and consumer premises equipment (CPE) technology have enabled a greater capability in terms of providing cable system and other network subscribers with both high-quality video and high-speed content/data download that is responsive to their personal needs.
Specifically, the advent of video-on-demand (VOD) technology has greatly increased the ability of a subscriber to utilize certain content (e.g., watch a movie) delivered over their cable system on their schedule. In a typical configuration, the VOD service makes available to its users a selection of multiple video programs that they can choose from and watch over a network connection with minimum setup delay. At a high level, a VOD system consists of one or more VOD servers that pass and/or store the relevant content; one or more network connections that are used for program selection and program delivery; and CPE to receive, decode and present the video on a display unit. The content is typically distributed to the CPE over a Hybrid Fiber Coaxial (HFC) network.
Depending on the type of content made available and rate structure for viewing, a particular VOD service could be called “subscription video-on-demand (SVOD)” that gives customers on-demand access to the content for a flat monthly fee, “free video-on-demand (FVOD)” that gives customers free on-demand access to some content, “movies on-demand” where VOD content consists of movies only, and so forth. Many of these services, although referred to by names different than VOD, still share many of the same basic attributes including storage, network and decoder technologies. Exemplary methods and apparatus are described in, e.g., co-owned and co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 09/709,594 filed Jun. 7, 2002 entitled “Hybrid Central/Distributed VOD Network With Tiered Content Structure”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Just as different varieties of VOD service offerings have evolved over time, several different network architectures have also evolved for deploying these services. These architectures range from fully centralized (e.g., VOD servers at a central location) to fully distributed (e.g., multiple copies of content distributed on VOD servers very close to customer premises), as well as various other network architectures there between. Since most cable television networks today consist of optical fiber towards the “core” of the network which are connected to coaxial cable networks towards the “edge”, VOD transmission network architectures also consist of a mixture of optical fiber and coaxial cable portions.
The CPE for VOD often consists of a digital cable set-top box (DSTB) that provides the functions of receiving cable signals by tuning to the appropriate RF channel, processing the received signal and outputting VOD signals for viewing on a display unit. Such a digital set-top box also typically hosts a VOD application that enables user interaction for navigation and selection of VOD menu.
While the architectural details of how video is transported in the core HFC network can be different for each VOD deployment, each generally will have a transition point where the video signals are modulated, upconverted to the appropriate RF channel and sent over the coaxial segment(s) of the network. Depending on the topology of the individual cable plant, this could be performed at a node, hub or a headend. The coaxial cable portion of the network is variously referred to as the “access network” or “edge network” or “last mile network.”
Similar to VOD technology, personal video recorder (PVR) functions allow the user a great degree of control over the playback and viewing of their selected content. The user can pause, fast-forward, rewind, and perform similar functions all via a unitary remote control or similar device.
Broadcast delivery models, while lacking the features and capability of VOD systems, are also none-the-less quite prevalent, and provide a more simplified and streamlined means of delivering content that is not personalized to any given user (e.g., live television programs, etc.). However, these broadcast models also have very significant latency of “new” content availability as compared to retail or rental distribution channels.
Hence in sum, a very salient downside to the use of “hard” media for delivering new content to consumers is the time and effort associated with obtaining it (whether by rental or purchase), and returning it (rental only), while a salient deficiency with VOD, broadcast, or similar cable distribution paradigms is the latency of the availability of new content as compared to the retail or rental (hard media) distribution channels.
Conversely, “hard” media has several desirable attributes, including (i) portability (i.e., the ability to physically transport the media and use it at any number of different locations); (ii) unlimited replay and control (i.e., the owner can replay, rewind, FF, etc. the media any way they want and as many times as they want); (iii) archival capability (i.e., the owner can back the content up onto another media, so that if one copy is lost or corrupted, it can be recovered without further purchase); and (iv) the ability to impose limitations on reproduction, and provide for copyright protection/enforcement, via physical limitations or configurations of the media.
Accordingly, it would be ideal to be able to merge all of the benefits of the hard media and network delivery paradigms, yet without the associated investments in time and effort in order to obtain (and return if necessary) the hard media, and also without the aforementioned content availability latency.
It would also be desirable for the subscriber or user to be able to preview the content before having to make a purchase decision, thereby allowing them to purchase only content they truly want to own. Ideally, such previewing would be temporally/spatially proximate to the purchase mechanism; i.e., if one liked the preview, they could buy it immediately. Under the rental paradigm, the user must first rent the DVD (whether by going to a rental store or via mail), view it, and then make some additional arrangement to return the rented copy and then purchase a separate (new) copy retail, or keep the copy they have. Under the retail paradigm, the user must have some foreknowledge of the content and hence form their purchase decision based on another source (such as a good review from a friend or a critic).
A number of commercial products provide ostensibly “new” content to the user, yet do not provide all of the benefits of a hard media. For example, The ABC/Disney MovieBeam system receiver comes with a predetermined number (i.e., 100) movies already stored inside. Each week, up to 10 movies are replaced with new movies, thereby making this approach somewhat similar to the Netflix approach of a “rolling” population of available content. This approach has no ability to allow for remote viewing, and restricts the subscriber in terms of their content choices.
Alternatively, SeaChange provides a consumer product that gives a DVD-like experience run from the network head-end. The SeaChange “VODlink” product comprises a software application that provides set-top boxes with DVD player capability. VODlink is a software suite that is interoperable on Motorola and Scientific-Atlanta set-tops, as well as on VOD server platforms from SeaChange and others. VODlink, however, is a basically an extended VOD system, and hence limited to networks with VOD delivery capability. It also is ostensibly affected by the same content latency issues described above with respect to traditional VOD services.
Furthermore, none of the foregoing solutions provide for delivery of media to other locations in a flexible manner; e.g., delivery to a user's premises, as well as to that user remotely such as when they are traveling. It is also highly impractical to bring one's DVD collection along with them while traveling, due to space and weight considerations.
Hence, there is a salient need for improved distribution apparatus and methods which allow a cable subscriber or other network user to obtain a “virtual” copy of their desired content in a prompt and effortless manner, using extant network infrastructure (e.g., VOD infrastructure and interfaces), and with the option of delivery to other locations. Such apparatus and methods would also optionally tie the purchase of the “virtual” content to the viewing of thereof, thereby providing content creators and distributors with a viable business model which would not usurp rental and retail profits.
Such improved apparatus and methods would also provide all of the benefits associated with a tangible medium to the subscriber, including inter cilia ability to replay as many times as they like, optional “trick mode” functions (i.e., the ability to fast-forward, pause, rewind, etc.), physical redundancy, the ability to transfer or trade the content with others, and low latency from selection to viewing, yet without the attendant cost and effort of purchase, storage, carrying from location to location, and possible loss or damage due to use, environmental factors, and so forth.
Such improved apparatus and methods would further enhance the user's ownership experience by extending the feature set beyond that available with a DVD purchase or rental, including inter alia the ability to optionally customize or personalize their content, provide for automated updates thereto, and even dynamically encode or optimize the content for use on different platforms or equipment.